| Ask Josh: TORNADO WARNING!WSAZ Blog Listing | |||||
|
Recent Blog Topics
|
||||
Save
Email
Print
|
This past Saturday, May 30th, at 8:22 PM, a tornado warning (which means a tornado was either detected by Doppler radar and or has been spotted by the public) was issued by the National Weather Service in Charleston for South Central Cabell County, Northeast Wayne County, Lincoln County and Northern Logan County, WV. The warning was in effect until 9:00 PM. From 8-11 PM the Stanley Cup was also being aired on WSAZ. I did about a 3 minute live cut-in at about 8:25 showing where the warnings were and showing where the storm was located and who was at most risk with this possible tornado. At about 8:40 PM I did about an 8 to 10 minute live cut-in as I got confirmation that a funnel cloud was sighted near East Lynn in Wayne County and moving into Lincoln County. There was strong indication on Doppler radar that a tornado could touch down at any point. I showed our live 3-D Doppler, showing viewers who was at most risk with this storm. Well since I had to break into programming, like the Stanley Cup, a major sporting event, I did get some nasty, rude e-mails and phone calls. Most of them were saying just run the crawl at the bottom of the TV. screen and don't bother us with breaking into programming! That was the nicer one, ha-ha... During the entire time, with the warning we also ran a crawl at the bottom of the TV. screen showing the warning. But in a tornado that's not really good enough. It's important that we show live radar and talk viewers through it and give safety tips. By the way, every television station in this country breaks into programming during a tornado warning. These warning's are issued to save life and protect property. It's our responsibility as meteorologists' and the severe weather leader in this market to give these warnings. Tornado warning's are serious and have to be taken that way. I realize not all of you had severe weather Saturday night. Here's what I told the few who sent me nasty e-mails: If a tornado was heading your way, I'm sure you would like to know as well. I realize the severe weather couldn't have came at a worse time. Thanks for understanding. So here are a couple questions for you, my friends. What do you think about us cutting into programming during severe weather events such as tornado's. Do you only want to see just the crawls at the bottom of the screen or would you also like to see live radar for specifics on where the storm is going? Do you find it rude that people who aren't experiencing the storm complain about it if you are? Please give me your feedback and let me know. Put your thoughts in the comment section below. As always, thanks for reading and your feedback! |
| Post Your Comments |
|
|
| Read Comments |
|
Posted by: Dale
Hey Josh, This is Dale from Carter. Did you know that at my place there is a lot of rain,why is this so?
Posted by: Jacob Buckler Hi Josh you rock as a teacher!! Posted by: Adam Josh, I most certainly agree that tornado warnings would take the priority of any regular programming. I don't feel that a screen crawl would be enough for a tornado - because it would be virtually impossable for a crawl to give the information needed for those who will be directly affected by the storm. Thank You so much for all that you guys do, and don't take any of those nasty emails personally. You can't please everyone, but I feel that the larger chunk of the viewers would agree that safety comes first. Posted by: Jason Coverage of severe weather, especially a likely or confirmed tornado, is ALWAYS more important than whatever program is running at that particular moment. Those who complained about the coverage when they themselves were not experiencing the severe weather should consider this: That weather, or something similar, could very well be heading in YOUR direction later that same day! That's especially true when there are organized individual supercells or multiple lines of storms. I could go on all day about the obsession with things like sports programming, but I will sum it up like this: Sports may be a fun and interesting pastime for some, but the fact is that there are FAR more important things in life and in the world to worry about, and it's time to bring some perspective to the fanaticism. I hope you will continue to deliver such important weather alerts in the future, regardless of what the naysayers have to say about it. Posted by: hayden When there is a tornado warning , does a tornado usually happen ? Posted by: linda Keep up the good work and maybe the idiots will get sucked up in a funnel next time... Posted by: Michael I think it is a great thing that you do. WSAZ is a great new station.Its not like you break into the shows for something stupid, or are on there for a very long time. To the people the was mad, oh well...get a life. Thank you WSAZ for all that you do. Posted by: anon Who cares what people think Its about saving lives not what sports team wins if it saves only one life then break in for an hour if need be Posted by: april i for one am glad that you do this. i value my life and safety and also that of my familys. i honestly wish that you would do it a little more. such as for severe thunderstorm warnings. but you are doing a great job. keep up the good work. just ignore the ignorant people who think sports is more important than their life. god bless you. Posted by: joe well that was interesting what area of my basement do i go? nw, ne sw, se, Posted by: Lori About 6-7 years ago,(approx), a macroburst hit the Pittsburgh area, a woman was actually killed by flying debris at Kennywood park, there was quite a bit of damage to scattered areas, the people were rediculous enough to complain, to KDKA and other stations for breaking in during sports broadcasts.....how assanine ! That commentators had to worry about people turning against their stations, and decreased viewership, that for days they gave the same explanations and apologies. I grew up listening to the Pirates...when they were really good...breaking news and warnings are a necessary part of life, these people are obviously mentally deficient. Posted by: Dee Josh, I think you did a great job. The other stations interrupted their programs also. There were people camping out at East Lynn with children. I'm sure they would have given anything to have had a TV to know we had a tornado warning. I know it came a horrible storm there. Keep up the good work, a life is more imporant than any show on TV! Posted by: Keith Hockey or DEATH! You choose. Posted by: mlewis21 i am a young wife and mother of 2 and i didnt know about our tornado warning until our local fire dept. set off the warning siren... i think josh did the right thing by interupting tv though, as a mother i will do anything to protect my family, no sports show is worth my kids and my husbands lives, you did the right thing you are a great meteorologist.. i am TERRIFIED of storms and my biggest fear is being caught in a tornado, so what you did thrills me.. i feel safer knowing that we have a news team that cares and will do anything to keep their viewers safe!! KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!!! Posted by: Meagan i dont live in west virginia, but if there were a tornado warning near me, i would want to know every detail about it... as a mother of 2 and a wife, i love my family and will do anything to protect them.. the stanley cup is not worth our lives or anyones for that matter, you did the right thing and that is why i ONLY watch wsaz! keep up the good work josh!!! Posted by: Mandy I think breaking into programs for a live update is the best way to keep the public informed and up to date on threating weather. I for one depend on WSAZ's weather team to keep my family safe at ALL cost. It is helpful to know where exactly the storms are and how much time I have to get my family to safety. It is better to be safe than sorry! Keep up the good work! Posted by: Heather I say great job! Continue to break into programming to show the paths of the storms and express the dire concern for safety. What is more important, a tv show or a person's life? Posted by: Devastator MBT Safety and lives first. You were outstanding in your coverage, please post the tornado safety rules on your website. Posted by: Andraya yes anytime that there is severe weather i would love to know about it, i dont care whats on tv, or even if the warning is for my location, i still would like to know thse things, i am terrified of the weather i know what it is capable of, i want to know these things ahead of time so maybe, i can save my family! Posted by: Anonymous DEAR "CONFUSED" YOU JUST ""DONT"" GET IT!!! GET OFF OF THE COMPUTER BEFORE YOU HURT YOURSELF! Posted by: Lisa Anytime there's severe weather I want to know about it right away. I don't care what's on TV.! Posted by: Gena Keep doing what you're doing! You're the best! Posted by: BETHANY I was more worried about you breaking into the program so I could here about the storm path rather than what i was watching on TV at the time....Thanks so much!!! Posted by: Anonymous Well in my opinion I think the weather is a little more important than any show on TV if it saves your life. I think there should always be a break in the TV shows if there is bad weather headed our way so we can have a warning. Keep up the good work!! Posted by: GG To "Confused": He's not crying about, just wanting feedback! Plus that's what these blogs are about. Also, not everyone get's MY-Z! Posted by: Jeannie I really like to know if severe waether is coming my way. I don't understand why people would complain about this. They probably wouldn't complain if the warnings were for their area. Posted by: Kim I think it was an excellent idea to interrupt programming. I expect my local news channel to do this. Maybe if people had experience a tornado situation maybe they would understand. Come on West Virginia, don't act so ingnorant!!! Posted by: Bernice I did not watch the Stanley Cup Saturday night, so I did not even know there was a warning issued. However, I think it is appropriate for the local news to break into programming when dangerous situations arise, be it weather-related or not. I'd rather have the choice to stay where I'm at or evacuate as conditions warrant. As far as broadcasting a crawl across the bottom of the screen with instructions to watch MyZ for more extensive coverage, keep in mind that many of us have DirecTV and do not receive MyZ via DirecTV. Yes, I know we could buy an antenna and a converter box to get it, but it simply isn't necessary if the local stations continue to provide us the critical information necessary to make an informed decision. For those of you upset about the game being pre-empted, why not mute the TV, turn on the radio, and listen to the game until the warning is over if you are not affected by the warning? Posted by: Confused Furthermore, why couldn't they of ran the scroll and put up a small dopplar radar showing the track of the storm...and went live on MYZ and explained in the scroll that live coverage was over on MYZ....the storm was in the MYZ coverage area?? Posted by: Confused Don't get me wrong I do believe it's important to have the warnings live and updates...and yes Josh does do a good job they all do..but I don't see the big deal all the blogs have been positive so who is complaing...a few hate emails sent to Josh..that is the price you pay for being on TV...why is he crying about it? Posted by: Gena Keep up the great work and break into programming during tornado warnings! Posted by: Deanna I would much rather know if a tornado is in the area and where it is going to watch some sports or anything else for that fact. You do a great job! I have Dish and do not get your weather on tv but do get it on the net. I like that you break in and I can watch it live on line. Thanks for all you do and keep up the GREAT work! Do what you think is right to save lives. Some people do not know you are saving people's lives everytime you break into shows and do live feeds. Don't worry about what some people say...DO IT YOUR WAY....The RIGHT way! Posted by: Anonymous dear "confused" apparently you named yourself correctly! ...oh and check it out...they got YOUR attention too! Posted by: JD Josh, I do appreciate the urgency during severe weather and I completely understand where some of the viewers are comming from as well. I strongly think that if a tornado or severe thunderstom is coming my direction, I would want to know about it. Now being in Greenup county, I did not get the tornado warning as Scioto county in OH did, but they do border Greenup county, we did though get the Sever Thunder Storm Warning. I am glad that we have a dedicated local news station and the other local stations as well. WSAZ is the #1 for First Waring on Severe Weather in the Tri-State. I was also disapointed about the stanley cup, but as soon as I saw the tornado warning in Scioto County, OH, I was more interested on which direction the storm was heading. Thanks JD Posted by: Kudo's for Josh! josh peoples lives are MORE important then the stanley cup! dont apologize for interrupting a sporting event that people tune into ESPN at a later date! i think a life threatening situation like a tornado warning takes presidence OVER a sporting event! stay strong josh! your fans and viewers are behind you 100% Posted by: april i want live radar josh... you did a great job and stayed very calm ... im glad you were breaking in with live updates cause i was one of those people in the path of that possible tornado....dont worry bout those beer drinking rednecks ..you did a great job and glad to have you as my meteorologist!!!! Posted by: G This is for "confused", no they aren't doing this for attention, this is what blogs are for. Get ahold of yourself! Posted by: bonn Unfortunately rude is what people do best now days. You guys do a great job and yes, of course tornado warnings should be given full story! It is serious stuff. There is never anything important enough airing to not give out the alarm! Thank you for caring! Posted by: Confused I think this is being blown up bigger than it really is! Most people in the area don't care that the game was interupted...Josh and Tony need to do their job and let it be that....Is WSAZ and it's meterologist trying to drube up attention? Posted by: Jenny Josh, keep doing what you're doing. You're a good meteorologist and I enjoy watching you. I'm sure you would've caught more issues if you hadn't broken into the "game"... Your fan, Jenny. Posted by: Joe Josh, First and foremost your job as a journalist/meteorologist is to inform people of events. That is what you at WSAZ and the other stations did on Saturday. No apologies needed. Posted by: Robyn I say that many of your negative calls came from those who have been hit too many times with a puck. You have a wide broadcasting area, and you need to reach everybody, not just those in Huntington and Charleston. This is a global community, and many cannot see past their own shrubs. Oh, if you hadn't broken in, and many were affected, you would have been slammed anyway. Maybe it is human nature to complain about what you cannot control, and no, we cannot control the weather. Hey, at least it wasn't the Superbowl and Heidi. Posted by: Gallipolis Josh, If it weren't for the technology and the expertise of great meterologist like you, we would all be ignorant of anything going on around us until it is too late. Hundreds if not thousands of lives have been saved through the years, thanks to people like you. Thank you for those very important break ins, we are proud of you. Posted by: Gary Break into programming for a tornado warning. A tornado can kill you. You can always watch a sporting event later on the news cast but you can't bring someone back to life after a tornado has hit them. I think WSAZ and the other channels did the right thing Saturday night. Good job! Posted by: Dagny A tornado warning IS news. We need the information as fast as you can get it to us. Though my immediate area didn't have the severe weather, I was able to call friends in the affected area and have them turn on your channel for the information. The health and safety of your viewers is by far, more important than any other programming that may have been on at that time. Thank you for your diligence and keep up the good work! Posted by: noah thank you alot for telling us about the tornado warning even know there was not one for us thank you! noah Posted by: Stop Worrying You're worrying to much what people think! Posted by: G.G. Well you do an awesome job! If bad weather like a tornado is coming, I want to know about it. I don't care what's on TV.! Break in! |
|
Popular Searches Powered by Local.com |
| Most Active Blogs | |
| Blog Topic | Comments |
| Ask Josh: WINTER 2009-2010 PREDICTION! | 49 |
Blog RSS Feeds
First Warning Hour-By-Hour Forecasts
WSAZ.com Sponsor Sections & Links
 |
Full 2010 Olympic coverage from the WSAZ Olympic Zone. Coverage begins Friday, Feb. 12, at 7:30p with the Opening Ceremony on WSAZ |
 |
A glittering holiday show full of fun and surprises for the whole family! Children thrill as Santa takes them on a magical ride to his workshop. |
 |
Healthy Connections Find a local health professional |
 |
A collection of resources here to help Moms weather the daily storms that come along with parenting. |
 |
SOMC Very good things are happening here |
 |
WV Lottery Nightly drawings and numbers |
 |
Big Sandy For all your furniture and appliance needs |
 |
Healthy Tri-State Tips to live a healthier lifestyle |
